Windows Server 2003 EOL: What You Need to Know

End of Life product announcements are a fact of life in the computing industry, and by extension the world of business, but some EOLs demand more attention than others. The end of Windows Server 2003 has the potential to be hugely impactful for a wide range of businesses, especially with the speed and volume at which digital information is transferred every day. Security, network stability, software and hardware compatibility may all need to be evaluated, so it’s important to understand what this summer’s cut off date means for your business.

Read on to see how the end of support for Windows Server 2003 might impact you, and what you can do now to ensure the integrity of your IT infrastructure.

What’s happening with Windows Server 2003?

Windows Server 2003 is going End-of-Life (EOL) as of July 2015 which means no further support, security updates or patches will come from Microsoft for this widely-used OS. Many small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) currently rely on Windows Server 2003 for compliance, security and compatibility. Those businesses will need to plan for, and execute on, changes to their IT infrastructure before July to be able to maintain or improve on the services that Windows Server 2003 currently provides.

How Does The Death of Windows Server 2003 Impact Me?

Maintaining any OS after EOL is costly. SMBs who choose to continue using Windows Server 2003 will need custom support solutions to make up for a lack of patches and security updates. They may also suffer from being unable to take advantage of the efficiency and new capabilities of Windows Server 2012 R2 and new hardware created to support it, such as Intel Xeon E3 and E5 CPUs.

Regardless of whether you choose to switch to a different OS or not, you’ll need to plan for the change coming in July, so now is the time to take a critical look at how your IT infrastructure will support not only your current need, but the future growth of your business as well.

What Changes Do I Need To Make Now?

Intel Xeon E3 and E5 CPUs support many technologies such as Trusted Execution Technology and Intel Advanced Encryption Standard New Instructions (AES-NI) which provide security benefits to server, cloud-storage and virtualization setups. Businesses with an eye toward operational efficiencies should take this opportunity to pair any software changes with hardware upgrades to reduce downtime and prepare themselves for future growth.

While Logic Supply doesn’t specialize in server-grade hardware, we do offer a number of networking solutions and components including fanned and fanless rackmounts, Jetway NF9-series motherboards which support 4 x 1Gb LAN daughtercards, and the Xeon E3-1265 processor. We also offer custom solutions for corporate project customers.

If you have questions about your various hardware options in the face of this major change, give us a call at 802 861 2300 or email us at info@logicsupply.com.